After back-to-back wins over Minnesota and Maryland, USC’s momentum stalled with a narrow 69-64 loss to Purdue, dropping the Trojans to 14-4. Eric Musselman’s team flashed early dominance with an eight-game winning streak, but Big Ten play has exposed cracks in consistency. Now, as USC looks to regain its footing, a potential boost looms in the return of 6-foot-6 freshman Alijah Arenas, who could make his long-awaited debut as early as Wednesday.

The USC Trojans are preparing themselves for their Big Ten matchup against the Northwestern Wildcats on Wednesday. Now, it is being reported by On3’s Joe Tipton that USC’s guard Alijah Arenas is set to make his debut in the Big Ten matchup.

“NEWS: USC guard Alijah Arenas is probable for the Trojans’ Big Ten matchup vs. Northwestern on Wednesday, source told
@On3,” Joe Tipton tweeted.

Alijah Arenas is the son of former NBA star Gilbert Arenas and was a five-star recruit for USC. The Trojans had high expectations for Arenas, but an accident changed everything.

The freshman had been involved in a serious car crash. Luckily, he survived, but tore his meniscus. Thus, Arenas was out the entire season. Last month, Arenas returned to practice, and eight months later, he could finally be making his debut. His presence could be the key for the Trojans to get back to their winning ways.

The doctor’s prognosis revealed that Arenas will be out for his entire freshman year, but all that has changed now that he is back in the picture, and his participation against Northwestern seems more likely. At least his return to participate in the team practice certainly points that way, and the timing couldn’t have been any better for the Trojans.

Why is Alijah’s Return Timing Great For USC?

The USC Trojans have found themselves loitering in some of the games this season, especially in the Big Ten, where their conference record shows more losses than wins (3-4). The Big Ten made USC lose some of that edge it had possessed earlier.

Michigan(96-66) and Michigan State (80-51) pulled the emergency brake on their speeding cruise, disrupting their swift ride in the process. The stretch is getting tougher at the moment, and you need someone play clutch, and that is exactly what Alijah Arenas is expected to do.

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Arenas was one of the top recruits in his class out of Chatsworth High School in Los Angeles. During his junior year, he reclassified from the class of 2026 to the class of 2025 and committed to USC, meaning he should technically be a senior in high school this season.

The Chatsworth High School Alumni played a total of 97 games with an outstanding statistic of 30.9 PPG, 7.8 RPG, and 2.8 APG. Arenas was ready to drop out of his college year and ready to make his name in the NBA as soon as he became eligible, before committing to USC. But all that changed, and now he wants to give it all to his college program.

Most importantly, a return against the Northwestern Wildcats could be the perfect game to make his debut. The Wildcats have lost five consecutive games in a row. Also, Arenas has no time restriction imposed, as revealed by Musselman himself, while speaking to the Olympics.

“We’ve timed it up where it’s not going to be a minute restriction like 10 minutes. It’s going to maybe 20 to 25, but it’s going to be pretty significant,” said the Trojan coach.

His coach is looking up to him, and his team is waiting for him to make his much-anticipated debut. So, will the months of recovery and rehab help him come in at his usual best as he walks through the doors of the Galen Center? Well, we will have to wait to find out, but more than a win over any team, Alijah’s story teaches us how to overcome adversity when things aren’t going our way.